Tony Gardner

Neil Preece-Smith made the confession as he was sentenced for possessing self-manufactured knives which he made from toothbrushes in his cell.

Leeds Crown Court heard the convicted arsonist was found in possession of the weapons at the maximum security jail on four occasions in June and July this year.

On the first occasion he approached an officer and said he was going to climb onto the roof to stage a protest before handing over two plastic knives which he had made by melting toothbrushes to give them serrated edges.

He also handed over a list of demands in which he called for a relocation to the prison’s F-Wing “for a break” and a “£4.80p smoker’s pack from reception.”

The court heard Preece-Smith handed weapons to officers on three other occasions.

Preece-Smith was interviewed about the incidents and admitted that he had made them and intended to use them on high-profile sex offenders.

He pleaded guilty to four offences of possession of a prohibited article.

Preece-Smith is serving a life sentence, imposed in 2006, for torching an ex-offenders’ hostel in Wakefield as he wanted to kill people staying there. The sentencing judge described him as ‘extremely dangerous’

Later the same year he was handed a 10-year prison sentence for aiding and abetting his cellmate’s suicide at Armley Prison in Leeds.

The 32-year-old appeared in court via a video link and did not have any legal representation.

He told Recorder Jeremy Barnett that he wished the sentencing to go ahead without having a lawyer.

He added: “I agree with it all and I just want to get the sentence out of the way and move on in a positive way.”

When asked why he had committed the offences, Preece-Smith replied: “There is a person in Wakefield called Roy Whiting and I have threatened him before.”

He added: “If I come into contact with these people I will carry out my threat but at the moment I am on F-Wing and I have stability.

“Should I come into contact with a sex offender I will carry out my threat.”

Roy Whiting is serving a life sentence for the abduction and murder of eight-year-old schoolgirl Sarah Payne in July 2000.

Preece-Smith was given a two-year sentence to mark his offending.

Recorder Barnett said: “It would seem to be that it is the case that he was generally unsettled at the time. It is not for this court to supervise or in any way involve themselves in the way prisons work their affairs.

“All I will say is that I am now satisfied that Mr Preece-Smith is settled and any issues he has seem to be over.

“I have to reflect the fact that these are serious offences and give Mr Preece-Smith credit for the fact that he has co-operated with the investigation throughout.”